Past Interns Teach Present Through College Tour

Last week our youth interns visited Macalester College in Saint Paul to learn about both college life and the college application process first-hand from Macalester students. Several familiar faces welcomed our group, including three Macalester students with an Urban Roots past. One of the tour leaders currently works at Urban Roots, one worked at Urban Roots this summer and one is a recent alumni of our youth intern program.

During the visit the friendly tour guides covered topics such as types of financial aid, support services for students on campus, high school steps that lead to a successful college application and what to consider when choosing a college. Former Urban Roots Intern, Gao Thor, gave a lot of helpful tips and inspiration to interns who are thinking about future paths.

While the interns were on the campus tour they were able to visit a real college dorm room, courtesy of our current Garden Program Assistant, Jessica, who is our current Macalester Bonner Scholar. The youth interns were a little surprised at the shared living space and had lots of questions for her. After the campus tour, the hungry group moved on to lunch at Café Mac. After lunch, the interns attended a mini-college class presented by a physics professor — complete with entertaining, interactive demonstrations on the laws of motion.

To round out the visit, interns had the opportunity to ask a panel of Macalester students questions about college. Question subjects ranged from dorm life and roommates to students’ biggest surprises about college and what they wish they would’ve know as a 9th grader in high school. Overall, the youth interns enjoyed spending time on campus and learning from the experiences of Macalester students. We look forward to our next visit!